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PICKENS COUNTY - Like the other 84 school districts in the state, the School District of Pickens County failed to make "Adequate Yearly Progress, or AYP.
The four county high schools also failed to meet those expectations.
The goals are set for both districts and high schools by the federal No Child Left Behind Act, and those targets are rising quickly each year, according to district and state education officials.
"South Carolina is feeling federal sanctions sooner and more severely than some states because the standards for being academically proficient have been set high in this state," said Julie Thompson, a spokesperson for the school district.
"When standards are higher, it's more difficult to make AYP," she said.
State educators describe the federal rating system as "all-or-nothing" that requires schools to make all targets or face sanctions. Thompson explained that failing to meet one target meant a school did not make AYP.
Here in Pickens County, Daniel, Liberty, Pickens and Easley high schools were required to meet targets ranging from 13 to 21, she said.
"Daniel, Liberty and Pickens High Schools missed only one target," she said. "Easley High School, the only district high school to make AYP in 2007, missed three of its 21 targets."
But Pickens County high schools were not alone in not meeting the federal targets, with only 50 of the 200 in South Carolina making AYP this year, which is down from 60 last year, according to state Board of Education officials.
Each state sets its own definition for academic proficiency under the federal act, and some educators are calling for a change.
"Until South Carolina's level of proficiency is changed, there will be qualifiers, exceptions and distorted pictures of the data," said Dr. Lee D'Andrea, school district superintendent. "For everyone's sake, I hope the issues with NCLB can be resolved soon, either in the next legislative session or through a reauthorization of NCLB."
Pete Pillow, a spokesperson for the state Department of Education, said independent national research shows South Carolina's definition is more rigorous and that the state is often mentioned in increasingly intense national debates about the need for "national academic standards" and national testing.
"The studies indicate that students who score proficient in many state would score basic or below basic levels in South Carolina," he said.
However, in all states, all students, including those who come from low-income families, speak limited English or have learning disabilities, must score "proficient" on the state's math and English language arts test by 2014, Thompson noted.
This year, the school district met 26 of its 33 targets. It fell short in math and English language arts for African-American students, disabled students and students receiving subsidized meals, Thompson.
The district also did not meet the targeted goal in English language arts for Hispanic students, she said.
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